HUNDREDS of mourners have celebrated the life of a fun-loving teenager who brought joy with his boundless charm.

Shinfield 18-year-old James Evans, known as Jimbob, died in a car accident on his cousin's farm last month, leaving his father Jim and sister Natalie heartbroken.

But they faced yesterday's service at Reading Crematorium with smiles and asked mourners to remember James as a fun-loving character.

The congregation was invited to dance the conga on leaving the crematorium, but few had the heart.

Instead mourners leant on each other for support as they filed into the sunshine.

The pain for James' family is harder to cope with because they are still grieving for James's mum Annette and his granddad Roy Harding, who both died from leukaemia in the past 18 months and James's grandmother Vera Evans, from Whitley, died from a heart attack last June.

It was at Mr Harding's funeral three weeks ago that the idea for the conga dance was born - James had commented after it that he would like music and dancing at his funeral.

His devastated father Jim wrote a eulogy to his son, saying James came into the world at 100 miles an hour.

The eulogy read: "Straight away we knew we had a character on our hands."

The tribute described James's pride at winning a job at GH Marshall, in Reading, where he was training to be a heating and vehicle engineer.

He had to study at college and found it hard but with help he got by. The eulogy said: "He returned their help by leaving a little bit of his heart with each of them."

An English oak tree will be planted on the farm in Warwick where James died.